The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on May 21 that the number of aid workers attacked in 2025 reached a record high, partly due to the increasing use of armed drones in conflict zones.
According to the Aid Worker Security Database (AWSD), which tracks serious incidents affecting humanitarian personnel, 907 aid workers were killed, injured, or kidnapped in 2025. Of these, 350 were killed, a slight decrease from the record 387 in 2024.
Condemning the violence, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the level of violence “unacceptable” and urged states to respect the laws of war and bring perpetrators to justice.
“Serving others has become more dangerous than ever,” Guterres stressed in a statement on Wednesday (May 21).
Tom Fletcher, head of the UN aid agency, said the proliferation of cheap, adaptable armed drones in conflicts has increased risks. In March, drone attacks on Goma in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo killed at least three people, including a French aid worker. Aid convoys in Sudan and Ukraine have also been repeatedly targeted.
AWSD data shows Gaza was the most dangerous place for aid workers in 2025, with 186 humanitarian workers killed, followed by Sudan. In response, Ramiz Alakbarov, the UN humanitarian coordinator for the Palestinian territories, stressed on social media platform X that “aid workers are not a target and humanitarian assistance must be fully facilitated.”
Philippe Lazzarini, former head of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), previously said he was seeking a high-level board to investigate the deaths of workers.
While attacks are increasing, funding for relief operations is being cut. The European Commission said it would continue to meet its funding obligations, stressing that “every aid worker killed is not only a personal tragedy but a failure of the international community to uphold its most basic commitments.”
Bushra Khalidi, Oxfam's global humanitarian policy lead, called for greater protection for aid workers, warning: “We are witnessing an attack on humanitarian action itself.”
